Voting to close because this seems to be a question prompting discussion with no clear problem to solve: a better question would be one like this that presents a specific problem.
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Dave DuPlantisNov 4 '11 at 20:44

1 Answer
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Well it depends on your personal playstyle, but the advantages a controller has over a keyboard are as follows:

360 degree movement (as opposed to 8 directions of movement)

More precise ability to pick your speed etc. (You can move really slow, or really fast depending on how far you push the stick, with a keyboard it's either fast or off).

Access to more buttons without stretching your fingers all over the place

Easier access to certain moves which default to the right stick on controllers (like one touch controls in FIFA, or the Hit stick in Madden)

Really, I use a gamepad in pretty much every type of game except 1st person shooters and some third person shooters, because you're generally sacrificing precision (mouse being more precise than the control stick, keyboard is less precise than the control stick) for convenience, and you don't need much precision except in shooters.

Did you mean to say that mouse + keyboard is more precise than a control stick?
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Anna Lear♦Sep 18 '11 at 18:51

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@AnnaLear Nope, I was saying that a mouse is more precise, but a keyboard is less precise. I'll be editing my post to clarify that now.
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Mr SmoothSep 18 '11 at 18:53

An analog stick not only gives 360 degrees of movement, but it also typically allows you to move at different speeds depending on how far you push it, whereas keyboard keys are either pressed or not.
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hammarSep 18 '11 at 20:26

@hammar, yes! I completely forgot about that. It's super important in racing games, where with a computer you have to tap the left or right keys over and over again to turn slightly, whereas with a controller you just push it slightly left or right.
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Mr SmoothSep 19 '11 at 9:07

Thx for this elaborate posting. The reason why I ask is that I am thinking on converting to a controller. Its just so much more relaxing for me to use a keyboard. But I guess practice makes perfect... +1. Before I accept I would rather see other peoples opinions on that though
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WoltanSep 20 '11 at 6:38